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What Mods/Projects/Designs are you working on this winter?

5K views 37 replies 21 participants last post by  SHNOOL 
#1 ·
I put my Bay Hen away for the winter today, and naturally, my mind went to what next? I have a few minor projects on the go and I am still kayaking for a couple of months yet.

1) I am adding foot pedal steering to my sailing kayak. I put the rudder together from some parts I had laying around, but when all was said and done, I wasn't happy with the control mechanism, so I bought a set of bolt on foot pedals to control the rudder, hoping to have them installed and testing by next week end.

2) Kettle bells, the off season is terrible for staying in fighting form for racing, so I am starting with 100 kettle bell swings and 15 snatches per arm per day. Should let me hit the ground running in the spring, I hope.

3) my nesting puddle duck racer is without a rig! Think I might build a lug rig and build my own dacron lug sail using my wifes sewing machine.

Any one else have projects this winter?
 
#2 ·
1) Making a Sailpack cover. Got tired of wrestling with the old ill-fitting cover this season. Want one that I can drop the sail into and zip up . Storing the boat with the mast and boom up this winter so I can check fit and make adjustments it using my Sailrite sewing machine over the winter.

2) New head hoses and installing new macerator pump in a new location to make it much more accessible.

3) Finish conversion of old diesel tank into fresh water rinse tank and install pump.
 
#3 · (Edited)
1.) building and installing a new countertop and sink in the head;

2.) making sun covers for the deck hatches - got a new fully manual $100 Chinese hand-crank sewing machine this spring and this will be my first project;

3) replacing all of the fresh water plumbing lines;

4) clean the junk out of the interior lockers, put on a fresh coat of paint on the locker insides.

Edit: oh, and go sailing.....Moon is in Florida!
 
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#4 · (Edited)
great thread!

I have an ongoing list of boat projects. Some are more cosmetic... like a cleaning and painting or the bilge or the engine... sanding and cleaning ext teak and varnishing the gloss trim and fiddles on the interor. Other projects are things like replacing some OEM wiring to lights or pumps... adding a USB port or two for handy charging or replacing one display whose LCD is getting hard to read. I might do a new anchor / chain wash system. And there's always the lightening up and getting stuff off the boat... and organizing and producing an inventory of what's left. Come Spring I will install some new running rigging/sheets and so forth.

Boat winters 35 minutes from our apartment and I make frequent visits to check and do work.
 
#7 · (Edited)
Projects for this winter include:
  1. Sending my sails in for inspection and minor repairs/restitching.
  2. Replacement of the engine exhaust hose - a bear of a job!
  3. Reconditioning of the teak swim platform deck (teak strips mounted to lids of storage compartments on the sugar scoop stern - I will just bring the entire lids home to work on).
  4. If I'm really ambitious I might replace the waste hose and holding tank for my aft head - but more likely that project will wait another year.
 
#8 ·
I pull all my Wooden parts , seats, hatch boards etc. and refinish. I have a plywood part for off season for the companionway. Handrails are SS, Love it!! New tells on both sails, adding some to the draft on the Main and moving a set on the Genny that I can't see for the top spreader. My Boom was FULL of Bees when I bought the Boat, ran them right out no problem but never took all the working parts out of the boom to clean and lube, this ones gonna be fun!
 
#9 ·
I need to do some re-wiring. Now that I've added more lights on the mast my current panel doesn't have enough switches. And it's in a stupid place anyway.

The decision I have to make is whether I should move the batteries when I do it. My boat is a bit ass-heavy and I think moving 150 pounds of batteries from near the stern to right above the keel would balance it a bit better.

But it makes it a much bigger project.
 
#11 ·
I have not. But I'm pretty sure it would be a good idea to move them.

It's a screwy setup. I have two group 31 batteries in series to make 24 volts. But they're not physically located together; one is back against the transom and the other is under the under the companionway. I think with the different lengths of wire they probably wear differently. I'd like to blame the previous owner, but I've had the boat for six years now…

At 150 pounds thats 6% of the weight of my boat. Moving that from the back of the boat to just in front of the centerline should make a noticeable difference.

The problem is I need to run about 50 amps to the electric motor on the back, so that's a fair length of some thick, expensive cable.
 
#13 ·
Lots to do, I'll maybe get to half of them.

Pull and inspect all 3 fuel tanks.
Refinish all interior doors.
Make new companionway doors and varnish them.
Finish boom restoration.
Complete the finishing of the new galley table.
Refinish the last few interior storage doors.
Restore the 51 yr. old cockpit locker lids.
Finish the turtle hatch restoration.
Fabricate fabric hatch covers.
Install new seacocks.
and on and on...…
Fun times.
 
#14 ·
Lots to do, I'll maybe get to half of them.

Pull and inspect all 3 fuel tanks.
Refinish all interior doors.
Make new companionway doors and varnish them.
Finish boom restoration.
Complete the finishing of the new galley table.
Refinish the last few interior storage doors.
Restore the 51 yr. old cockpit locker lids.
Finish the turtle hatch restoration.
Fabricate fabric hatch covers.
Install new seacocks.
and on and on...…
Fun times.
Somebody's gonna be busy, my list looked (Kinda) like that for the last few years, there's still a list but it get a bit smaller each year.
 
#15 ·
Busy busy busy. We are contemplating replacing the wood veneer on our main bulkhead and settees. It has darkened with age and traces of mistreatment through the years are not adding to its appeal. The deck and cabin trunk, which we painted about fifteen years ago with two part Interlux, is looking worn (it has chafed off in places) and needs a re-do. Our jib car control lines are too big, and need replacing with smaller diameter stuff so there is less friction. Dodger is getting somewhat dodgy, with snaps that don’t, clouding, and tears. Have to figure out a way to get the green/brown oily water stain off the Awlgripped forward topsides. Bottom needs a real sanding/smoothing if not fairing. Wind/speed instruments need new bezels; they’re getting too cracked/crazed to read easily. Overhaul the winches. Overhaul the seacocks. New alternator belt. Fix steaming light. Fix light in head. Fix deck/backing under foredeck cleat. Add material (weld) to boom where the sheet bail is turning the holes into ovals. Check wear on main traveller track ends.

That’s one boat. We have have seven.
 
#18 ·
Further contemplation on this thread… My list is unusually small. Other than dealing with some repairs/maintenance, there really isn’t any large project that comes immediately to mind. The screens for the bimini, but that’s not even a big project.

Usually I tackle one large project each season. But right now I can’t think of anything I really need to, or want to, do. Could it be that my boat is perfect :)?
 
#19 ·
My problem is scope creep.

Last fall when I took my mast down I decided I wanted a windex light. This is not a big deal, just a $30 light and some wire.

But as long as I’m running wire up the mast I should run one for an anchor light too. And I should replace that ancient steaming light with a new LED. Heck, might as well get one of those steaming / deck light combos.

So now I have four wire runs up the mast instead of one. So I need a new deck socket and new wiring inside.

In fact I need a new panel, since I’m out of switches.

And if I’m replacing the panel I should really clean up the old wiring.

And as long as I’m doing all that I should really move the batteries like I’ve been meaning to.



So adding a windex light turns into a major piece of work.
 
#20 ·
@Minnesail I feel your pain. The next time I'm hauled out and decide to step the mast it will be bulkheads, chainplates, rigging, spreaders, all wiring, new masthead hardware and lights because it needs/will need/probably should/might as well since I'm at it. Until then, I'll carefully balance the perfect / good enough equation.

Since Winter in the Land of Endless Summer means my biggest obstacle to major projects is that it cuts into sailing time. My to do list includes:
-New bow cleats (completed last weekend)
--Remove Toecrusher (the original centerline cleat)
-Reefing hardware installed and lines led aft (about 50% done)
-Find and seal remaining water intrusions.
-Lots of wiring projects from small to large.
-Install solar
-Newish breaker panel
-Woodwork and locker doors
-Rebed stantions with new backing plates (original aluminum backing is disintegrating)
-Replace cabin sole

I'll probably think of more and be happy to get about half of it done.
 
#23 ·
This is our first winter with Pinniped. We hauled out on Monday. Our new cover from ShipShape is arriving tomorrow, so in the next two weekends, we will make a trip north to get her under cover. Other than that, there are just a couple minor winter projects—winter in Erie, PA can be pretty rough, and we are two hours away, so there’s not much boat work happening on the boat itself! At-home projects include finishing the hatch covers I had started earlier (to see if we liked them before I built all six of them), and making some new pillow cases and pillows for the berths. I’ll also be buying a few things for installation in the spring, including a windex and a new VHF.

Come spring, the must-do major project is the bottom job. Items on the want-to-do list include installing the new VHF and windex, finishing repainting of the deck, cabin trunk, and cockpit; cleaning up and painting a couple of dings in the topsides from the previous owner; replacing the head hoses; rebuilding the head pump; adding some 12VDC outlets for USB chargers and such. I really want to paint the topsides down to the waterline, but I think that would require more time than I have. Many of these things can be done in the water, too, so I’ll probably prioritize the stuff that is easier to do on the hard.

Jonathan
 
#24 ·
Funny, the more I think about it the more I realize how quickly the list grows!

Soon the boat will come out of the water for a week to have some gelcoat repairs , a new chainplate installed and the rig tuned, all of which is an insurance claim.

While the boat is out of the water I will repair a couple of rust spots on the iron keel, put on a couple of coats of antifouling and install a new Flexofold prop.

Once the boat is back in the water I want to varnish the cockpit table and service the engine.

Depending on how the boat budget holds up I would like to get started on installing an wifi network, upgrade the audio system, install a battery monitor, and plan the addition of solar panels.

I'm sure I can dream up a few more things but the budget is just about exhausted for now!

Fortunately most of what I am doing is basic maintenance and upgrades, not major repairs. That's one advantage of a newer boat.

Sent from my SM-G960W using Tapatalk
 
#25 · (Edited)
2019-2020 work on hard;

- Bottom ablative paint in the spring, every year
- Top side paint November, last done two years ago
- Deck paint November, last done four years ago
- Cockpit paint November or spring, last done 10 years ago, sanding
and some repair

- New lazarette hatch. This covers the outboard in well. I upgraded
from a 6hp to 8hp Tohatsu which has a slightly larger cowling that
just touches the hatch. This may not need to be done after I correct the prop leg offset. (see next item)

- Change the slope on the mount for outboard in well. Something is
maybe not level, the prop is slightly offset from center and results in a wide arc of travel when the tiller is centered. The prop leg is about 3 deg from vertical if I assume the rudder is vertical when the tiller is centered. I may also lower the outboard mount 1/2" to 3/4".

- Relocate battery lower and centered.
- Relocate electric panel. There is nothing wrong with the current location, it is just in the wrong place for me.

- If I have time in the spring, new cockpit and cabin cushions.
 
#26 ·
- Relocate electric panel. There is nothing wrong with the current location, it is just in the wrong place for me.
Mine is in a really stupid place. Right at the foot of the companionway, just exactly where you're likely to hit switches with your foot. Even more than the switches, that's also where the 12v outlets are, and I'm always knocking the USB adapters out. I really need to move my panel.
 
#27 ·
My electric panel which for a 20ft boat is bigger than one would expect is located so that I need to kneel on a settee to see it. It will be relocated so that I can see it sitting on a settee or standing on the sole at the base of the companionway ladder.

For too many times I have missed the light that tells me shore power is connected.
 
#28 ·
It's the end of my first season with the Suncat, so it's mostly just cleaning, winterizing, mouse-proofing (ha!), etc.

Beyond that, I don't plan to internally combust next year, so I'm looking into the various small electric outboards.
 
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#30 ·
I use a Minn Kota 74 lb thrust motor on my 22' boat and and that has always been enough for me, including driving into heavy wind and a couple times towing other similar sized boats.

But the 74 adds the complication of being 24 volt and requiring two batteries. Since your boat is lighter I'd say a 55 lb thrust would be more than adequate for you.

Unless you want to get fancy and go with a Torqeedo! Those are sweet.

Congrats again on the Suncat. I love those Compacs. They look so fun, and so easy to rig.
 
#34 ·
Things on the list-

Composting head
new interior cushions
build a new rudder
refinish tiller
install tiller pilot
fix leak at genoa track
new genoa

What actually happens will be less- based on funds (unstable), and time (My sister just divorced her dirtbag & is moving in with me). I'm not sure if this means no funds & no time, or more likely no funds and I NEED TO ESCAPE!
 
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